Sixteen young lives perished. The young men were killed by terrorists. They were policemen but they were also sons of parents. They belonged to an Armed Police unit but they were unarmed when they were slain in the most brutal way.

The terrorists used a bulldozer, home-made bombs and knives to attack the policemen, who were doing their regular morning drill in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, on Monday, killing 16 of them and injuring 16 others.

When the news reached me through a mobile phone news channel, my first reaction was a recollection of Armed Police soldiers rescuing earthquake victims in Sichuan in May. The most striking image was the photo showing a soldier holding a baby in his arms. The smiling young man in army uniform looked childish himself.

Now, 16 soldiers of the same age were killed. Their mothers are weeping; the whole nation is feeling the pain.

The terrorist attack was obviously the performance of those who seek the establishment of the so-called Eastern Turkistan State, an idea that has only met condemnations from countries across the continents, those who were admired by some Westerners as fighters for "freedom" and "human rights", and those who are followers of a Xinjiang woman whom some Western politicians recommended as a candidate for the Nobel peace prize.

For many years, some Western politicians have been so sympathetic with those who want to split China that they even keep silent at the violent and terrorist actions of the separatists. What happened in Lhasa, Tibet, in March were exactly such actions of violence and terrorism. The Westerners, however, never expressed condemnation of these actions.

The anti-China clamor from the Western politicians that has intensified along with the approaching of the opening of the Olympic Games amounts to a morale booster to the separatists.

The killing of the 16 young soldiers in Kashgar was the first of its kind in China. It is not only a challenge to the Chinese government but a challenge to China's common people as well, because it seriously hurt the feelings of the Chinese people, who had been harassed by so much sneer and fault-finding during their preparation and anticipation for the Olympic Games.

The terrorist move is also a challenge to all the peace-loving people throughout the world. At a time when the world is battling with many problems, including economic recession, grain shortage and ecological deterioration, peace and harmony is especially more precious than ever before. All terrorist actions are against the benefit, and the will, of the people throughout the world.

The Kashgar terrorist attack has aroused great anger among the multi-ethnic Chinese people. The terrorists have turned themselves into enemies of 1.3 billion people.

We Chinese have been living in peace for three decades immersing ourselves in pursuit of economic well-being. "Fighting" has been absent from our lives for many years. Now we find that terrorism is no longer something distant from our lives. The latest event has awakened us to our tradition of meeting challenges bravely and triumphing over any enemy.

In Chinese culture, a citizen's duty to his/her nation and family is superior to personal concerns and public interests transcend those of individuals. Decades of pursuit of wealth may have blurred such a sense among some of our people but it is latent in the soul of every Chinese. Once triggered, it will become a force that is strong enough to overpower any adversities in our nation's way of advancement toward revitalization.

Terrorists, beware! China is no paradise for you.

E-mail: liushinan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 08/06/2008 page8)